Our Scotch Ale is a bold amber beer that balances smooth rich sweetness with a hint of peat smoked malt. The infusion of this subtle smokiness invites images of heather fields, platters of haggis, & the poetry of William McGonagall. Enjoy one with your mates!

Beer: Ratings & Reviews

Reviews by TK5150:

A- Pours a murky, hazy amber with a small beige head. A nice amount of lacing is left on the glass.

S- The smell is light caramel/toffee/vanilla, a bit old and funky, with just a hint of smoke.

T- Crystal malt, vanilla, berries, herbs and spicy smoke. A hint of iced tea flavor as well which I always get with beers aged a bit too long. Not bad, actually.

M- For the most part, medium bodied. I drank this too cold at first, and it felt thin, but as I let it warm, the body grew into heavy medium bodied. Smooth, with just a bit of a kick at the finish.

O- Aged too long, but I still like it. I bet this would have been quite nice into MAYBE 2009 at the latest. Still an enjoyable beer for sure, but nearly 5 years of age is certainly too long. Smutty is bringing this beer back this year after a several year hiatus, and I would suggest drinking it fairly fresh for best enjoyment.

More User Reviews:

Pours a light brown with some deep orange tint with a thin head,awesome malty aromas big and fruity with some caramel and brown suger in there as well the aroma alone warms ya up a bit.The body seems just a tad thin but not to watery by any means,a malt bomb here caramel and brown suger are the base of the flavors with some alcohol dipped fruit in there as well.This will keep the dampness of the day from getting to me,very solid Scottish ale a style I really enjoy I would drink this again anytime.

Pours from the bomber a deep murky brown with hints of red and a nice creamy tan head on top. A sweet malty nose with a nice helping of peat tones as well as dark fruits. Earthy tones pop out....pretty nice and heavy on the malt with a hint of hoppiness.

First sip brings a big, sweet chewy maltiness upfront. There's a nice peaty, spicy, earthy flavor that blends in very nicely and is not overpowering at all. Some hints of raisins, dark fruits, maybe a drop of molasses. Just enough hop bitterness on the way down to wrap it all up nicely. A slight alcohol presence on the swallow...a nice Scotch ale overall.

Mouthfeel is full, creamy and chewy....goes down smooth and coats the palate nicely. An easily drinkable brew...but a bomber is enough for me. Scotch ale is not one of my favorite styles...however Smuttynose has done a nice job with this one. I look forward to more from the Big Beer series.

Nice creamy head like you would expect from an oatmeal stout, except this is a scotch ale. Very dark, also like a stout.

Smell is kind of a turnoff. The alcohol is very present, and the rest of the scent makes me think of soap.

The taste is excellent, though. Very smokey, rich, roasty, toasted, oakey. Deep, with a good amount of complexity. A very filling beer that I can see pairing up with a meal perfectly. The mouthfeel is full and well developed. Tons of personality!

I dont think you could have too much of this in one sitting (as it is so filling), but it sure does go down easily! Smuttynose scotch style ale is one I would definitely like to come back to.

A wonderful beer. It's a nice brown color with a fairly substantial head that dissipated quickly. It had a predominately malty aroma. The taste was more complex. My crummy taste buds could pick out fruit and malt, with a hoppy backtaste. It felt very smooth, with a moderate amount of carbonation. A very drinkable beer; the 25oz bottle was just the right amount.

Smell: Extremely malt, fruity, estery, fresh, herbal with a nose full of caramel.

Taste: Ultra-smooth mouthfeel, creamy, juicy. Very malty, thick and rich with a solid full-body and slick feel. Malt sweetness is high and fruity with buttery caramel, toasted malts, light carob and biscuity malt finish. Hop bitterness is mild with a tea-like infusion of herbal and floral flavours, and a touch of spice that lingers off into an alcohol presence. Finish is slick with malty/bread notes.

Notes: Perhaps one of the best offerings from Smuttynose, IMO. Malty, but magically balanced and so damn drinkable. A spot on Scotch-style Ale too; malty, low hops, some caramel and hefty.

This "Biggun" poured a clear, dark, mahogany, with a small, tan head that quickly drops into patchy and collar lace. Aroma is very malty, as expected, with notes of toffee, molasses, and caramel. A faint whiff of floral hops is also apparent. Mouthfeel has a moderate hops bite and plenty of carbonation.
Tatse is very malty to start, with toffee and caramel sweetness. There is a nice funky, hops bitterness to keep things in check. Some vinous notes emerge midway through, and the taste develops a number of complexities. A fig/date fruitiness gives way to more dark fruits as the alcohol content becomes noticeable. Vinous notes try to reassert, but get knocked back by the bitter, floral hops and heavyduty malt character. I don't pick up any peat or smoke flavors here, but it's still a very tasty Scottish style ale. With some smokiness, this would earn some superlative scores from this reviewer.

Bomber bottle, w/o freshness dating. Pours murky and cloudy dark chocolate in color, with a long lasting tan head. Leaves extensive, sticky lacing. Nose is of some more chocolate and peaty, earthy goodness. This is a smooth, full bodied brew. Notes of semi sweet chocolate, more peat, some smoky, brandy and dark berries. Tasty smokey and also sweet, this is a nice malty brew with pleanty of character and flavor. The last pour adds a healthy dose of yeast, adding to the richness and complexity. Chalky dryness late. Well worth a try

Corn copper color with a full finger of soft, light tan color...sits quietly on top and goes nowhere for quite a bit and produces some lovely thick lacing as it recedes into the brew itself.
Mellow scotch aroma in the nose with sweet molasses and buttercream.
Taste is real nice...vanilla, sweet malt, definite scotch presence but very subdued and very well blended with everything else going on here. A decent amount of floral hops thrown in to dry up the finish.
Mouthfeel is quite thick and the carbonation is just where I want it....this style has really grown on me and Smutty does it right on this one. Goes down so easily and keeps you coming back for more.

Once again, the power of beer karma smiles upon me. Enjoying a few pints with some friends and fellow BA altctrlsdelete at Capital Ale House last night, I noticed Matt had ordered this beer. Again, this was not listed on the tap list...it looked good....I ordered one. As the old knight guarding the Holy Grail (of the non-Monty Python variety) in Indians Jones and the Last Crusade would say: "You have chosen....wisely."

Served in the commerative CAH St. Patty's day glass, the scotch ale is deep brownish-caramel in color. Miniscule lace quickly died away (though my glass was filled to the brim) to just a fine layer at the edges. Aromas are an interesting mix of caramel malts and a chalky-smoky character. Flavor is full of malt. Great level of hoppy bitterness balances. Finishes with an ABV kick and a spicy, zesty aftertaste. Very drinkable with a medium-bodied smoothness.

Notes: I've never really gotten into Scotch ales, but this was a real eye-opening experience for me. I will definitely seek out some more of this style. Kudos to Matt for this one.

Edited 4/1/04: Apparently, this was a very rare and very special "oak-aged" version of the regular beer.

Smells of thick, sugary malts, with just a touch of earthiness to it: a subtle olfactory hint of the peat-smoked malt inside.

The taste follows these smells almost exactly, as the ale delivers a shotgun blast of sugary and peaty malt. The combination here works well, as the sugary side of the beer contains nice fruit flavors and dark fruit esters, with caramels and perhaps a hint of brown sugar, but the peaty side of the malt lends a stabilizing tang, bringing a smoky, almost-sour quality that, if you've ever smelled a fire lit with dried peat moss, will be instantly recognizable. Hops are also present, giving a nice bitter third layer that lingers on your tongue for a bit after the brew has gone down your throat.

The only complaint I might have about this brew is that the aftertaste is vaguely metallic, as if I were sucking on a penny. Still, that's a very small complaint for what is otherwise a great Scotch Ale.

Split a bomber with a friend during dinner yesterday. Not gonna lie, picked it up because I like the style and I liked the label...

Appearance-Pours a handsome deep shade of dark brown that still lets in a little bit of light. Not too aggressive pour yields two fingers of nice tan head that quickly fades down to just a ring around the edges. Carbonation appears fairly minimal, and a decent amount of stick lacing left down the side of the glass as I drink.

Smell-A nice whiff gave me a good dose of booziness and malt with this one. Very sweet smelling with a lot of malt and a lot of caramel toffee. I had a hard time getting past the sweetness of the smell to some of the more complex nuances, but they did seem to be there...perhaps a bit of peat in the background on the second and third whiff.

Taste-Lots of caramel and sweet malt. I enjoyed the flavor on this one. The caramel sweetness covered up the booziness just enought to my liking in a scotch ale, with just the right amount of warming alcohol coming through in the aftertaste. Again, a little surprised because I thought the flavor profile was going to be a little more complex than I was able to detect, but I certainly liked what I did pick up on and found it to be very representative for the style.

Mouthfeel/Drinkability-Mouthfeel was nice and sticky as complementary per the sweetness. Carbonation level was nice, present but not too overwhelming. The only area where the mouthfeel suffered for me was that I found it to be a little bit on the thin side compared to other scotch ales that I've had before. Regardless, it felt nice in the mouth and nice going down. Sweetness however did kill the drinkability of this one for me a bit, though certainly average for the style

Overall, very solid scotch ale. Not my favorite that I've encountered and could have been a little thicker for my liking, but I'd have it again.

Tea-colored with orange highlights where the light gets through. Has a quickly receding foamy light brown head. Aroma is sweet malt with some hop smells getting through, and some hints of brown sugar. Mouthfeel is very smooth, envelopes the mouth. Flavor is sweet malt, with some molasses, and a bit of raisin. Not sweet like some scotch ales, and very even. The ABV hides beneath the flavor, and does not overpower the tongue.

Finally a Smutty beer I really like a lot. Pours a clear dark copper with a foamy eggshell head. Decent retention and lacing. Smells quite malty with a hint of toasted almond.

Taste is pure unadulterated malt. Very slick, smooth, and buttery. Body is medium with minimal carbonation. Finishes just a hair on the alcohol burn side, but it works for this style. Nice solid product.

Poured into fluted snifter; deep ruby, clear, with a fluffy cream-colored head. Fades after a bit leaving chunky lacing. Smells of sweet malt, caramel, crisp bitterness, hint of smoke. Taste follows nose; sweet malt, doppelbock-like, crisp bitterness with a bit of smoke in the aftertaste. Mouthfeel is slick but hefty in body. Overall, this is the biggest scotch ale I've tried. Very big flavor and mouthfeel, definitely a sipper. It went great with my family's "pretend we're irish" meal of corned beef and cabbage.

Dark chestnut appearance, clear. Good 1/2 inch head with dripping lace. Aroma is subdued but lingering, some distant smokiness. Heavy mouthfeel, cinnamon tones and prickly hop up front and early. Some carob and vanilla sweetened cream inthe mid mouth impression. Finishes with a distinct bite for a Scotch Ale. While equally alcoholic as more traditional "heavies", this one has more of a hoppy bite to it than many.

Appearance: Ruddy burgundy creamy off white head leaves specks of lacing, not bad. Aroma: Reserved smokiness rich fruit and kiss of alcohol blends beautifully. A deep bready character weighs in with the rich malts very nice Scotch ale, definitely classifies as a Big Beer. Taste: Chocolate tones peated malts nice blend no heavy fruit undertones a bit reserved in some ways but tasty altogether capped with a touch of hops. Mouthfeel: Medium bodied ale with a smooth carbonation hard to believe how easy it was to polish off one with a friend. Drinkability: Could a drink a couple, of course. However save these for special occasions and share with friends they will enjoy imbibing on this bad boy.